St. Louis, MO Elevator Accident, Mar 1892

FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENT CAUSED BY THE FALL OF AN ELEVATOR IN A ST. LOUIS BOILER FACTORY.

THREE WORKMEN CRUSHED TO A PULP BENEATH IT -- TWO OTHERS FATALLY INJURED.

St. Louis, March 15. -- A frightful accident, by which three men were instantly killed and two others fatally injured, occurred at the boiler factory of ROHAN Bros., at the corner of Second and Collins streets, shortly after 7 a.m. At that hour the bell had just sounded for the men to go to work, and FRANK CONN and HUGH DUFFY were receiving instructions from Foreman HENRY KAISER, as to their work for the day. The three men stood directly beneath an immense elevator used for hoisting heavy machinery. The elevator was at the second story of the building, and THOMAS FLAHERTY and MICHAEL SWEENEY were engaged in loading it with sheet iron plate. The men sounded the warning bell as a signal that the elevator was about to descend. They then started the huge machine, and it had scarcely moved when the rope broke, and it fell with a crash on the men standing beneath it, crushing them into a shapeless mass of flesh and bones. The other employes of the factory rushed to their rescue, but were compelled to use heavy iron bars and levers to life the immense weight of broken timbers and iron, in order to remove the dead and injured men. Following is a list of the killed and injured:
Killed:
HENRY KAISER, foreman, 28 North Ninth street.
FRANK CONN, boiler maker, Twelfth street and Geri avenue.
HUGH DUFFY, tackle rigger, 1413 North Twelfth street.
Injured:
THOMAS FLAHERTY, Seventh and Biddle streets, deep cuts on head and shoulders.
MICHAEL SWEENEY, Ewing and Clark avenues, injured internally.
Several men were slightly injured by flying timbers. The bodies of the three dead men were removed to the morgue and the injured men taken to the city hospital, where their injuries were pronounced serious and perhaps fatal. The elevator had been recently repaired and the rope was comparatively new. The apparatus was inspected a few weeks ago and pronounced in good condition.